Category talk:Chirei Clan
Clan? or Race? Is there any documented basis for referring to different demon families by race/clan? I think by tradition we refer to the minor families by race, and the major families by clan (ie. birds are a clan, and reichou are a race) but I don't know if there is a basis for this. I suspect the use of race came from Remiel's SMT translation effort (possibly the first accurate translations of a Megaten game) ...as for clan, I can't recall the major families being in SMT1, one sec... Wow, someone made a Gamefaqs SMT1 guide almost twice Remiel's size (without translations) ...but anyway, Remiel uses race, but flips the major / minor. But doesn't mention the minor races in his faq. In my SMT1 guidebook (the best) the major races (bird, beast, dragon, etc.) are significant for three way fusion. I'm as bad about saying race/clan as anyone. But I'm thinking these words are really not accurate, either translation wise or application wise. If I had to choose a word (in English) I'd say "family" is probably better. And maybe call the major groups "families". As in Category::Chirei Family, and Category::Oni Families. Say minor (ie. Chirei) and major (ie. Oni) if you gotta. Of course in most cases I would avoid saying family altogether if possible. In fact Category::Chirei would probably be better than Category::Chirei Family, Category::Chirei(Minor Family) might be better than both. And say Dwarf: Chirei Family, might be worse than Chirei Dwarf (the only slight problem being readers confusing the family name with the devil name) Just saying, I don't think race or clan are accurate. Both have connotations that really don't hold water. But it's no big deal. --Yksehtniycul 19:39, 25 June 2009 (UTC) :Actually, after thinking about it, I think it would be much more prudent to just say Chirei Devils/Demons (no room for confusion there) ...btw it would be nice if this wiki could make a habit of using Devil instead of Demon when correct. It ain't called Digital Devil Story for nothing. --Yksehtniycul 19:51, 25 June 2009 (UTC) ::Heh, you could have suggested that earlier. I'm currently going through SMT/SMT2 Demon Categorization and adding what stats of the demons I could find, and I had thought over using Clan, Race, Class. Since "shuzoku" could translate to either race, clan, tribe, family, class, species or whatever in that line, I hit a wall. Finally, I decided with whichever category was mostly used at the time, and Clan was it. ::I read somewhere in a MegaTen forum that "demon" sounds more general than "devil". I don't mind renaming the Demon Categories though, but "Category:Megami Demon" sounds easier to the ears than "Category:Megami Devil", but a lone "Category:Megami" alone sounds more easier than both. I'm gonna go over the stats for a while and complete what I can. BLUER一番 10:44, 26 June 2009 (UTC) :::It is actually incorrect to use "Devil" all the time (capitalized or not -- usually not) ...there is a precise science to which term is correct in which situation, but rule of thumb, devil is interchangeable with say "Pokemon", whereas demon is more descriptive (ie. demonic) ...to say devil suggests a specific nakama compatible character. The word nakama is also so integral to megaten history it would be nice to see more as well. Actually proper usage dictates whether to say devil/nakama/demon. You should see devil plural less often than demons, but it is proper to say devils in some case, usually when referring to a particular set of devils. :::PS: It really isn't a big deal to have pages/content that doesn't follow the most recent guidelines. That's what redirects are for. Just need to make sure avid editors realize the guidelines as they evolve. I think the problem of daizoku is more real. I still couldn't tell you how to translate stuff like the Ma daizoku and get away with it. And just saying Ma Devils seems a little iffy. I think the best literal translation is probably Fae, but that might freak some nerds out. ::::You (whoever you are since you didn't sign) mentioned Nakama! Now I'm more inclined to say "Category: Megami Nakama" than either "Megami Devil" or "Megami Demon", all because SMT1/2 never crossed to the English regions. What did the Aeon Genesis translation use, anyway? BLUER一番 11:44, 26 June 2009 (UTC) :::::I always forget to sign!! Translations are awesome, but I just play the Japanese games. Oh and the word nakama should only be used to describe a devil in your party. Never a devil that could be in your party. It has to be in your party/summonable at the instance of speaking to be a nakama. :::::PS: Just to be clear. In japan, they are always devils, not demons, when talking about a specific character. --Yksehtniycul 11:48, 26 June 2009 (UTC)